Byte by Bite

Beware dialup users, IE 7 is no Firefox

by Marv Dealy

Once loaded, I opened up the new and improved browser to find, well, it’s not Firefox. It’s a little better (I’m told) when viewed with Vista but still doesn’t really offer anything new. Yes, there is tabbed browsing and yes, it’s supposedly more secure. How long do you think it’ll take before the first patches are available?

In a move I don’t understand, Microsoft has seen fit to hide the “menu bar” where you’re used to seeing the words File Edit View Favorites Tools Help at the top of your browser. They are now turned off by default, and you have to go to Tools then click on Menu Bar to get them to show up.

Microsoft dove into the deep end of trying to make their Internet browser look more like an Apple product, and decided that meant hiding all the words, apparently. Now you get nothing but icons which you may or may not agree makes sense. Some reviewers say that as they use IE7 more they get used to the changes and agree with them, and I say those reviewers should have been using Firefox all along. I see no reason not to stay with Firefox for my Internet browsing. If you haven’t tried Firefox, it’s free from the folks at Mozilla.com.

To the mailbag—first, from reader Gunnar Sharp who writes “Thank you for the info and your time. I’m sure you’re flooded with letters from people asking for advice.”

(I’d responded privately to Gunnar’s email about who to choose for an Internet satellite service and installation.)

Gunnar continues “I’ve tinkered with the idea of getting satellite before—I may just do that as a Christmas present to the family. We’ll keep reading your article to stay up on the latest. And might I say you’re a real asset to the community.”

Thanks Gunnar, I’ll keep that email and show it around at raise time—hah! And your family is now expecting that satellite for the holidays—woops.

From way back in July comes this email from Randy Stime of Seattle who writes “As a U.S. House of Representatives employee in 1975 I installed the first word processor on the House side—the Senate had jut put in their first Wang. A year later I moved to Seattle and started selling Linolex units, then purchased by 3M.”

“I sold different systems for the next 10 years, keeping 2 of the 4000 series of 3M-Linolex. Last year I called the Smithsonian Institute asking if they would take the donation of one, and they said ‘no.’ The same offer was made to the Washington State Digital Archives, and they gladly accepted.”

“For tax donation purposes, do you have any idea what the value of a 1977 3M-Linolex 4000 with CRT and keyboard, program disks and manuals, would be worth? The state fellow said he had no idea, but ‘it has to have a high value in that it is in such good and complete condition and so rare.’”

“I'd appreciate any thoughts you might have on how to establish a value for this item. Thanks, ahead of time.”

Good question Randy, and I’m sorry that your email had been lost in my inbox. My email inbox can get pretty scary some times, and every once in a while I just have to groan and knuckle down and spend the time necessary to file, read or delete the stuff there. That exercise this morning led to your email.

I don’t know a quick answer to your question—you might start by claiming the original value of the stuff. Even better—get a letter from the state guy thanking you for the gift and ask him to state in there it might even be worth millions. Give that to your CPA and watch them pucker.

I checked eBay and didn’t find a single Linolex 4000 there, and all Google found was references to (mostly) German websites advertising replacement ribbons for the printers which said—I think—that they were out of stock.

I’ve kept quite a bit of older equipment around in the belief it had actual value to someone, somewhere, somehow. Plus, I jut can’t bring myself to throw things away that just a few years ago were worth thousands of dollars. It just doesn’t seem right. And I’ve not been willing to go down the road offered by two local good old boys who said hey, they’d just dig a big hole in one of their back pastures and bury all the monitors and other computer parts I’ve accumulated. I’m not sure, but I think the transaction would have cost a six pack of beer.

I was able to find an artist who makes wonderful little things for your desk out of various items that used to be inside your laptop or desktop computer and he took some old Apple computers, but if any of you out there want an old computer to donate and write off your taxes, let me know. Good luck on finding someone to donate it to, however.

A couple of readers wrote after last Friday’s fishwrap, first Ramona Cook who asks “Could you tell me where Matt (that sent a blog to you saying he has DSL in Monte Grande) lives? I called Frontier and they said that they do not have DSL available on Monte Grande Road (where I live) in Monte Grande Heights. Cover Ranch is over the hill from me. Any suggestions? Is there a way for me to contact Matt?”

Well, yes Ramona, there is a way to contact Matt with your question and we just did it (Hi, Matt). I can’t give you his telephone or email, of course, but he’ll have some input after he reads this. You might continue to check the blog (www.Talk-Here-Now.blogspot.com) to see if he responds there. If anyone else with knowledge about just where DSL really is available can chime in and help out here, there’s a lot of folks that’d appreciate the information.

Next to write was Lee Isbell who wrote concerning how she uses her laptop after I made snide comments about them blowing up in your lap. Writes Lee “Gee, I must be one of the unusual people, because my lap is where I use my laptop, kicked back in my recliner.”

“I have a cheapo $10 plastic no-moving-parts heat disperser (or whatever you call it) to keep from frying my legs. I see laptops used in a variety of postures at airports—a lot of them involving sitting or lying on the floor, or, if lucky, one might find a seat near an electrical outlet to get a final battery boost before the flight. Most of these postures use laps or variations thereof. Heck, if I want to sit up to a table or a bench or such, I'll just use my desktop computer, so I'll have a decent keyboard.”

Thanks, Lee—you spend more time in airports than I care to but I know what you mean. I find more people are using laptops as one might have once used a desktop. It takes up less space, and with the addition of a full size keyboard and mouse is quite useable. There are some, including me, who don’t really like to type on a laptop keyboard, there being no way to get the keyboard close enough to type comfortably much less rapidly while keeping the screen far enough away to focus. And what is it with that screwball touchpad that laptops come with? Who invented this reason for eventual hand surgery anyway?

Remember—these columns are reproduced online at UnionDemocrat.com, and at Throck.com/articles.html